Coming from a family of Los Angeles-based general contractors and architects, the path towards interior design only seemed natural.

“You can’t learn to design a home unless you know how to build it first,” her father advised when she decided to switch career paths after college. While obtaining her graduate degree from UCLA, Nicole worked for T. Violé Construction (her family’s general contracting firm) to learn the building side of the business while simultaneously interning for Adam Hunter Inc, a West Hollywood-based interior design firm. While in LA, Nicole was also a founding board member of the Southern California Neoclassicists (SCNC), a sub-chapter of The Institute of Classical Architecture of America’s Southern California chapter for emerging professionals. She graduated with honors from UCLA with a degree in Interior Architecture and Design.

Upon completing her studies at UCLA, Nicole moved to New York City to work for the AD100 firm, Peter Pennoyer Architects, in their in-house interior design department, where she worked on several high-end residential projects throughout the Greater New York area.

Nicole later joined Tammy Connor Interior Design, helping open their Charleston, South Carolina office, and assisted in growing it from a satellite office to their primary design studio with 5 designers, designing projects throughout the Low Country and Southeast.

Nicole started Nicole Layne Interior Atelier in 2020 and is currently working on projects in Los Angeles, Long Island, Charleston, Maine, and Sun Valley, Idaho. She is a member of the Institute of Classical Architecture of America, Southeast Chapter. She resides in Charleston, SC with her husband, Walker, and their two children, Claire and Jack.